FIELD OF CHAMPIONS – Christian Cantrell and Chase Childers led the running back-by-committee attack here Friday night as the Piedmont Bulldogs rang up 379 rushing yards on the way to a 28-0 shellacking of visiting Weaver.

Piedmont head coach Steve Smith said that going into the game, he was hopeful his team would run the ball effectively against the Bearcats.

“We feel like one of our strong suits on offense is the running game,” Smith told The Post during a post-game interview. “We were able to do some things with formations where we got them outflanked and outnumbered.”

Piedmont's home opener got off to a sloppy start. After holding the Bearcats to a punt near midfield, Cantrell led the Bulldogs on a 90-yard march. But a fumble near the goal line resulted in a touchback and gave Weaver the ball on the 20-yard line.

The Piedmont defense stiffened again, however, forcing another Bearcats punt. One play later, Childers rumbled 63 yards on a quarterback keeper for the TD. Senior Luke Smith added the PAT, and the Bulldogs led 7-0 with 1:03 remaining.

“When you've got a quarterback you can direct-snap the ball to, it's almost like having another tailback,” Smith said. “And our offensive line play has really improved since the season started.”

Following another three-and-out by the Bearcats, fumbles and penalties stalled a Piedmont drive that ended with a missed field goal midway through the second quarter.

After swapping punts for several minutes, Piedmont began its second scoring drive of the night after Austyn Grissom intercepted Weaver quarterback Tyler Freeman at the 50-yard line. Six plays later, Jamal Johnson's seven-yard run upped the lead to 13-0 with a minute remaining in the half. The PAT was no good.

Cantrell, who rushed 14 times for 157 yards, finished off Piedmont's opening drive of the second half from five yards out. Childers passed to junior wideout Noah Willis for the two-point conversion to make the score 21-0 with 10:11 left in the third.

Childers closed out the scoring with his second touchdown on a 13-yard keeper with a 1:06 left in the third quarter. Sophomore Chris Stott booted the PAT.

Childers, a senior, finished the game with 77 yards on seven carries.

Piedmont completed only four passes for 57 yards in the game, but the relentless ground attack – nine different Bulldogs had carries in the game – and a swarming defense proved the difference. Weaver managed only 125 yards of total offense and committed three turnovers.

Still, Smith saw areas where he believes his team can improve.

“We put the ball on the ground two or three times tonight,” he said. “One was in end zone that cost us a touchdown. And we pride ourselves on our passing game, on being a more balanced offense. But we took what they were giving us tonight.”

The win gives Piedmont (2-1) a 2-0 record in Class 3A, Region 5. The Bulldogs travel to Tarrant this Friday night.